by Jaci Burton
He’d been lucky to find this place situated on the cliffs with an incredible view of the water. It was isolated, which was just what he’d needed so he could take the time to be by himself, to reflect and figure out his next steps.
Not that he’d figured out what those steps were just yet. But he would. Soon.
A light rain began to fall, the taps on the roof reminding him of his childhood. A fire roared in the fireplace, keeping the small cottage warm. Perfect. He sat on the sofa and put his feet up, sipping the coffee he’d poured.
Being alone wasn’t so bad. He liked it out here—a chance to commune with his homeland again, to breathe the sea air and remember what it felt like to be in Ireland.
The first few days he’d stayed in the village where he’d grown up, though he didn’t know but a few people there anymore. Still, it felt good to reconnect, to go visit his parents’ graves, to feel closer to them somehow. It had been so long.
He’d spent some time at the cemetery talking to his ma, telling her about his troubles with Brenna. Just talking it out had helped give him some perspective. Then he came up to this place and had fallen instantly in love with the seclusion and the beauty of it. He drove down to the village for groceries, but otherwise, he was completely alone.
Alone and missing Brenna so much he thought his heart might shrivel up and die from it. But he couldn’t change how someone else felt, he could only manage himself.
Still, he intended to go back and fight for her, convince her that what they had together was the real thing. And if it took him the rest of his life to convince her, then that was what he intended to do. Because that was what you did when you loved someone—and you knew that that someone loved you back, even though she might be afraid of love.
He was a patient man. And Brenna needed him.
There was a knock on the door and he frowned.
No one should be up here.
He walked to the door and opened it, shocked as hell to see a totally soaked Brenna standing there, suitcase on wheels trailing behind her. She looked utterly miserable and pissed as hell.
“Really, Finn? You had to come all the way to Ireland to get away from me?”
“You think this trip was all about you?”
“Wasn’t it? I’m wet. Can I come in?”
He stepped aside to let her drag her suitcase in. She left it at the door, shook off the water from her raincoat and undid the buttons, hanging it on the hook by the door.
Finn went into the bathroom and grabbed a towel, then brought it out to her.
“Thanks.” She sat on the bench and pulled off her boots.
“Want some coffee or tea?”
“Coffee would be great, thank you.”
He poured a cup for her, then carried it into the living area where she’d taken a seat on the chair by the fireplace.
“Thanks. Nice place.”
“It works for me. What are you doing here, Brenna?”
“Oh, we’re getting right into it. Okay.”
“No reason not to, is there?” What he wanted to do was grab her up into his arms and hold her, kiss her and tell her how he felt. But he knew she’d made this trip to talk to him, so he was going to let her do that.
“I guess not.” She took a sip of the coffee, then set it on the table and stood, coming over to stand in front of him. “You left without saying anything. I missed you.”
His heart pinged, but he pushed it away. “I left so I could have some time to think.”
She tilted her head back and he tried not to get lost in her eyes. “Think about what?”
“Next steps. My future. What I want.”
He jammed his hands in his jeans pockets to keep himself from reaching out to touch her. He’d spent the past week reconciling in his head how he was going to deal with seeing her every day, working with her every day, and not touch her, not kiss her, not think of her as his. And now she stood right across from him, having traveled thousands of miles to see him. He was confused as hell.
“What do you want, Finn?”
He dragged his fingers through his hair. “Honestly, Brenna? I don’t know yet. Right now I just want some peace.”
He walked away from her and stood at the door to look at the sea, at the rolling waves and the rain coming down, the fierceness of nature mimicking the storm roiling inside him.
And then she was next to him and her hand was on his shoulder, her touch burning him from the inside out.
“I’m sorry, Finn. Sorry for hurting you so badly that you felt you had to leave. This is all my fault. I was so scared about how I felt, about how much you made me feel. I’ve never felt like this before, so consumed by love that I was afraid it would overwhelm me. And you were right when you told me that the mistakes of my past had led me to make all my decisions. I had to let that go because I’m not the same person I was then, and you’re not at all like the man I was once married to.
“You’re kind and gentle and open with your feelings. You even argue with me and tell me when I’m wrong, which I don’t often appreciate at the time, but in retrospect I realize I need so much in my life. But you also listen to my point of view and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate that. I love you, Finn, and my heart will break if I can’t spend the rest of my life with you.”
His heart filled to bursting, and as he turned to face her he saw the tears streaming down her cheeks. He swiped them away with his thumb, then took her hand in his.
“I love you, Brenna. And one of the things I came to terms with while I’ve been out here is that you’re worth fighting for. Even if it was you I had to fight with. I was never going to let you go. Because you’re everything I’ve ever wanted. You’re a smart, funny, beautiful, sexy, oh my God, stubborn-as-hell woman, but you’re the perfect woman for me. And my heart will break if I don’t get to spend the rest of my life with you.”
“Finn,” she sobbed.
He pulled her into his arms and kissed her, tasting the salt of her tears and releasing the emotion he’d held in check since the last time he’d seen her. God, he loved this woman so much he was never letting her go.
Except for just a minute. “Go on, sit by the fire and warm up. I’ll be right back.”
* * *
• • • • • •
BRENNA HADN’T EXPECTED that Finn would even open the door for her, let alone that the two of them would make up—that he would tell her he loved her, not after all the mistakes she’d made. But she’d told him the truth—she loved him. And she’d keep on telling him that for as long as he let her, because she was never going to make the mistake of letting him go again.
Every word he spoke to her was like magic. She realized how she’d ignored the truth all along, how she hadn’t seen the wonderful man standing right in front of her all this time.
He came back into the room and she stood.
“I’ve been holding on to this,” he said. “Hoping I’d get the chance to give it back to you.”
And then he knelt in front of her and held out the claddagh ring, the one she’d missed having on her finger since she’d stupidly removed it.
“Brenna Bellini. The first time wasn’t real. This time is. I love you—everything about you—the way your smile lights up my day, the way your beauty knocks me off my feet, the way you love your family that’s become my family, too. I love how smart you are and how hard you work. I love your moodiness and your sarcastic wit and the way you challenge me. I love that when we fight you still come back to me, because we belong together. I want to build a future with you, a family with you, forever with you. Marry me.”
Her entire body trembled at his declaration of love. She held out her hand. “My hand was cold and my soul was empty without that ring—without that part of you. I love you now and forever, Finn Nolan. Yes, I’d be honored to marry you.”
He s
lipped the ring on her finger and stood. “I’ll get you a diamond—”
“You absolutely will not. This is the only ring I’ll ever need. And you’re the only man I’ll ever want. Now and forever. Now kiss me.”
He did, and her heart was full. He picked her up and carried her to the bedroom, and with the storm raging outside, they made their own storm rage inside as they hurried with removing their clothes, touching each other as if it had been months instead of just weeks without each other.
And when he was inside her, she looked into his eyes and knew she had found her forever.
Afterward, he brought her suitcase into the bedroom so she could put on dry clothes, and then they wandered into the kitchen to make some food.
“How much longer do you have this place?” she asked as she peeled potatoes while he cooked the meat.
“Another week.” He leaned against the counter. “Can you stay?”
She thought of all the work waiting for her at home, and things she’d need to juggle, and then she looked out the window. The rain had ended and she had a clear view of the cliffs and the sea.
Wow.
She looked over at him and smiled. “I’ll e-mail my sisters and my mom and let them know. They can carry on without me. I think you and I could use some alone time.”
He slipped his arm around her and kissed her, and she melted into his embrace.
She could have never imagined that what started out as a fake engagement would end in finding the love of her life.
She would never take this amazing love for granted again. She couldn’t wait to start their future together. It was going to be an incredible life.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jaci Burton is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Brotherhood by Fire series, the Hope series and the Play-by-Play novels.
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